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RHS, Herbarium
WSY0017687
This is a plant portrait of Narcissus 'Sir Winston Churchill'.
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Sue Drew RHS / Sue Drew
RHS-0003390
Hyacinthus orientalis 'Woodstock'.
Get inspired for next year’s planting
Choosing bulbs
Summer is slowing down and as the deadheading starts to ease why not take the opportunity to get inspired for next year? Now is a favourable time to buy and plant many spring flowering bulbs. The variety and interest that they can add to the garden is undeniable, either on a small scale in planters or as bigger groups in flower beds and lawns. There are boundless combinations of colourful tulips, sleek daffodils, sweet scented hyacinths, miniature Muscari and many more to experiment with.
Here are a few of my favourite bulb varieties that we grow here at RHS Rosemoor:
Daffodils
Daffodils follow the snowdrops as some of the earlier spring bulbs to emerge. We have large groups of all yellow Narcissus obvallaris AGM, an attractive daffodil favoured here for its ability to cope with our heavy soil. Elsewhere dainty N. cyclamineus AGM and N. bulbicodium AGM illuminate the lawns down to the lake during March and are also grown in pots in our alpine house. To extend the season I like the ruffled cream and apricot petals of N. 'Sir Winston Churchill' AGM, grown here in large pots that flower in April.
Tulips
Although a good time to buy tulips, we recommend planting them in the cooler months from October to December. This year we tried Tulipa ‘Spring Green’ AGM in an herbaceous bed. A traditional shaped tulip with gentle white and green striped flowers, it fitted naturally amongst the new herbaceous foliage. With so many varieties to choose from, why not get a selection of early, mid and late flowering tulips to get the most out of your efforts?
Unfortunately, we do remove these bedding tulip varieties and start afresh each year, as the bulbs don’t tend to come back well. However, if you’d prefer something longer lasting you could try alpine tulips. Tulipa tarda AGM is a superb example of these, with gorgeous yellow miniature flowers with white tips that look good at the front of a bed, or in pots of rich, well-drained compost.
Muscari
As you may have experienced, Muscari or grape hyacinths are very good at spreading themselves around the garden. If you do not fancy introducing anymore outside, you could still use them in pots inside. If planted throughout October and kept in a cool and dark place for at least 10 weeks, they can be brought inside to flower from mid-winter until spring. I personally love the pale blue cultivar M. armeniacum 'Valerie Finnis' in small terracotta pots dotted about the house.
Hyacinths
For a hyacinth that doesn’t get out of control outside why not try the large highly scented cousin of the grape hyacinth. Hyacinthus orientalis ‘Woodstock’ is a bold and beautiful maroon variety that suits an outdoor planter or bed. Plant in the autumn for a one-off show and simply cut back the flowering head once faded.
Alliums
Alliums are valuable architectural plants for May/June that come in a variety of purples and whites. Allium ‘Firmament’ is a lovely new variety we’ve introduced to the border, standing 80cm tall with a mauve head of starry shaped flowers. It looks great hovering above the leaves of other plants which disguise its own fading foliage. Plant in large groups where possible in well-drained soil for a display that comes back year on year.
Tips to get the most out of your bulbs
Store bulbs in a cool dark place until planting.
To get the most out of your pots why not try bulbs in layers with the largest bulbs at the bottom and an inch or two of soil in between each.
Plants bulb at a depth roughly 2/3 x their own height.
Firm them in but don’t push too hard as the roots will grow and anchor them in.
Discard any bulbs that look diseased and are soft or mouldy.
Water bulbs in pots once after planting and regularly when leaves are visible.
Other jobs for early-mid Autumn:
Collect and sow the seed from hardy annuals indoors.
Net ponds to catch autumn leaves.
Start to reduce the watering of indoor plants as temperatures cool.
Sally Newbrook
Horticulturist